ソラノイロ ー NIPPON

Last weekend a friend invited me to a new restaurant that opened in June of 2015 on Ramen Street in the Yaesu basement near Tokyo Station. Ramen Street has a selection of famous ramen shops from around Japan, so I was excited to check out a restaurant that had a few vegan options. Soranoiro has 3 locations around Tokyo station, and the location inside Ramen Street is the newest shop. The first location, Saranoiro – Japanese soup noodle free style, opened in 2011 and because very popular.

Although the restaurant isn’t totally vegan, they advertise their vegan offerings in many places throughout the restaurant. They had two vegan versions of their Veggie Ramen and even a vegan soft serve ice cream, which I didn’t get to try this time when I ate here. I’m excited to try it next time I’m at the restaurant.

You might have to wait in line at this location, if you go during busy times. You use the ticket vending machine to purchase your ramen and give the ticket to the staff. The inside of the restaurant doesn’t feel like a typical ramen restaurant and seems more like you’re eating inside a restaurant in a trendy area of NYC or LA. I hear the other locations have more of a ramen restaurant feel.

The ramen doesn’t look like a typical ramen either! The bright colors of the vegetables make the ramen look really tasty. The food was good, and I would definitely come back to have it again. You can swap the normal noodles for whole wheat, but I don’t think I’d do this again. The wheat noodles were really just whole wheat pasta, not ramen. It’s a good option for some people though.

I still like T’s Tan Tan in Tokyo Station better, but this is definitely a great option for people who want to try something different. They also have vegan soft serve ice cream, so just that alone is a great reason to come here!

Recently, I wrote an article for the Japan Travel website Taiken Japan about the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum. I wanted to write an additional article explaining which ramen shops offer vegan options.

You might not know about the museum, so below is a short paragraph from the article that tells you a bit about the museum:

Wouldn’t it be amazing to try ramen from well-known ramen shops from around the world without stepping foot on a plane? At the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum you can do just that. The museum was started in 1994 as the world’s first food themed amusement park. Instant ramen was first developed in 1958, and the museum is themed around this time period. Once you enter the museum, you feel like you’re walking back in time. The museum is themed with advertisements from the early 60’s, and ramen shops looks as if they were built in this time period. The museum also has information personnel dressed as police from this time period.

Many of the ramen shops offer a vegetarian option, but only three offer a vegan option. Keep checking back here, as I will try to update this page if more start to offer a vegan ramen. When you find any of the restaurants below, look for the ramen on the vending machine that has the green tomato icon (like the one below). This will point you to the vegan option.

Ryu Shanghai

Ryu Shanghai is my favorite ramen of the two I’ve tried so far. The ramen in VERY spicy, so if you’re not into spicy it’s probably a good idea to try the vegan ramen at one of the other shops. The ramen here is miso based with thick noodles. It’s so flavorful and tastes amazing. Definitely try it!

Komurasaki

The other vegan option comes from Komurasaki. The ramen normally has a pork based broth, but their vegan ramen has a vegetable based broth. This ramen is much lighter than the miso ramen at Ryu Shanghai. It was really good too, and I liked they use vegan meat as a topping on the ramen.

Narumi-Ippudo (Ramen is pictured bottom left) is a new pop-up shop at the museum that was added in Oct, 2014. I haven’t been to the museum recently to try it, so I have to make the trip out there soon. Side note: If you don’t follow VeganJapan on Instagram, I highly recommend it! They post great photos of vegan food from all over the Tokyo area. I have found so many great vegan foods thanks to their posts.

If you can read Japanese, you can refer to this chart that shows which restaurants serve a vegan ramen:

If you have’t been to the museum yet, I highly recommend it. The trip is a little far from central Tokyo or even Yokohama, but well worth it!

Be sure to comment and check out my other restaurant reviews from Japan and around the world here: Restaurant Reviews

I really enjoyed eating at Kinatei in Nara. The food was great, and the experience was really memorable.

Kinatei’s store front

The restaurant serves Japanese and Chinese style vegan dishes, and everything is homemade and organic. I got off at Kintetsu Line’s Nara Station and did a little sight seeing before coming, so the walk walk a bit far. However, the restaurant is much closer if you get off the JR Nara Station.

The owner, Yoshiko, immediately greeted us in English. She was very cheerful and told us we were one of the first visitors of 2015. There wasn’t really a menu to look at when we went for lunch, as Kinatei serves only a set menu for 1500 yen. The set includes four small dishes, unlimited soup and rice, a drink, and dessert.

The food was delicious. Our lunch set started off with a really tasty miso soup, and a bowl of rice. The miso soup was made with locally sourced vegetables, and I was delighted that I could ask for a second bowl.

The four small dishes were also great. The first was a salad, and the second was Japanese style pickles. I am a huge fan of Japanese pickles, and the owner assured us that unlike other places, there was no dashi (fish broth) used here. The third dish was a mushroom topped with a type of vegan omelette with soy meat. It was garnished with homemade sauce. My favorite was the fourth dish, a potato croquette and a piece of organic friend tofu on the side, also topped with the same homemade sauce. I wish I had taken more notes, because before brining each item out, the owner told us where the vegetables and other ingredients were sourced. It was very impressive to hear that she uses mostly local farms.

The lovely meal was finished off by coffee (or tea), fresh fruit, and a sweet bean jelly made from agar.

If you are looking for healthy but delicious Japanese style, definitely come to Kinatei when you are in Nara. There aren’t very many other options in Nara, and you will not regret eating here. The offerings change daily, so I am excited to go back and see what else is being served!

Aside from the great food, the whole experience was very memorable. As I mentioned above, the owner Yoshiko was very cheerful. While our food was being prepared, she took the time to talk to us. (She is fluent in English, Japanese, Mandarin, and can speak a little Spanish) Afterwards, she offered to drive us to Todaiji Temple. It was raining hard that day, and after a while we took her offer. She surprised us by first brining us to a nice park and giving us sliced apples to feed the deer in Nara. Then she drove us to the temple. Before leaving, she told us that if we ever come back to Nara, give her a call and she can pick us up fro the train station. Yoshiko was very kind, and her kindness made Kinatei and Nara a memorable visit.

Lastly, here is a picture that Yoshiko took of us while dining at her delicious restaurant.

Vegans Cafe is a little more difficult to reach than some of the other vegan restaurants in Kyoto, but don’t let that stop you from coming here. The food is probably my favorite in all of Japan. It was dark out when we got to the restaurant, so we couldn’t really see any signage, if it exists. On the first floor is the restaurant. The second floor has a vegan store set up, which was fun to walk through.

Vegans Cafe has Western and Japanese style seating. So if you’re in the mood for some traditional style seating, you can do that here. They also have their menu in English, which makes things a bit easier than just looking at the photos. I’m not sure that the staff speaks English, but the menu was enough to get by on.

The Food

The menu items at Vegans Cafe seem to be Indian and Western inspired. There are pizzas, pastas, pitas, and casseroles. We had 4 in our party so we got to taste a variety of menu items.

For starters we got the roasted soy meat bowl, which was a special of the day and a few yen cheaper. The taste was amazing! The texture was very much like real meat and the flavor was fantastic. While we were at the restaurant, there were a group of tourists from China. One ordered this meal and really thought it was meat. The staff had to show her the packaging so she could verify the item was vegan. I would definitely order this again!
For one of our entree’s we ordered two casseroles: (Left) Keema Curry-Style with rice and white sauce, and (Right) Milan Style with Brown Rice in white sauce. To be honest, I was a little reluctant to order something that relies on cheese. Vegan cheese can be great, but can sometimes be… not so great. WOW! The cheese in these two casseroles was amazing! I’m not sure how they make their cheese, but it was very good. The flavors of the two casseroles were completely different, with the Keema having chickpeas and going for a more Indian style curry flavor. I only had a taste of the Milan casserole, but thought it was great as well. I would definitely order these again. Their a little pricy, but I think worth it (around ¥1400 each).

PIZZA!: (Top) Roast Soy Meat Pizza, (Bottom) Pizza Curry Special

I didn’t get to try the Pizza Curry Special, but the Roast Soy Meat Pizza might be the best pizza I ever had. The pizza was crisp and the meat was amazing. The cheese…. perfect! I was really surprised at how good the cheese was. Being from Philadelphia, which has the best vegan pizza place on earth (until maybe today?), Black Bird Pizza, I was very impressed. I’d like to taste both pizzas at the same time to compare. I really think this pizza has the chance to win. The Roast Soy Meat pizza is probably the most pricey item on the menu at Vegans Cafe (¥1728), but well worth it!

For dessert we got the Soy Milk Soft Creme Parfait. A large is big enough for sharing and is ¥972. Amazing! The taste was very similar to a milk based soft serve. I haven’t seen any other soft serve available in Japan, so this was a real treat! It comes with a muffin and some fruit with a strawberry sauce. It was great!

After you visit the restaurant, I would suggest visiting the store on the second floor. They sell their own dried soy meat as well as other vegan products.

The restaurant is about a 15 min walk from one of Kyoto’s famous attractions, Fushimi Inari Shrine. You can take the subway from Kyoto station, which would mean a little bit of walking from the station. You can also take the bus (¥210/ride) from the station, which would drop you off about a minute’s walk from the restaurant. A cab is probably the most convenient, but costs about ¥1500.

I highly suggest visiting Vegans Cafe when you’re in Kyoto. It has the best vegan food in the country!

I will admit that I have never had Hawaiian cuisine before, so to my delight, I discovered Olu’Olu Cafe in Setagaya after attending an awesome street erformance festival nearby (video at the bottom!). What’s even better was that it was all vegan. Yes! All vegan, and super delicious!

The moderately priced menu was fully available in English, including the lengthy specials menu. First up was our appetizer: Bruschetta with soy cheese and organic basil (660 yen).

While not Hawaiian, exactly, I was intrigued by the soy cheese. The verdict? It was delicious. It was creamy, and reminded me of a mozzarella cheese. The basil and the side of sweet tomatoes also added a nice flavor.

He enjoyed the entree, but says he wishes there was more tortilla chips. I, however, can’t say one bad thing about my entree: Mochiko Chicken Bowl (1030 yen). This is where the Hawaiian flavor comes in.

The vegan chicken was crispy and perfectly fried. It was lightly glazed with a sweet and sour sauce, and served over brown rice and a salad on the side. It was so delicious! It was perfect, and I highly recommend it.

While I guess only 1 out of 3 items we ordered were Hawaiian, it does give us a reason to go back and try out other dishes. With its extensive menu, affordable prices, and great flavor, there is no reason not to go back for repeat visits! Check this place out if you are around!

For more photos, including some pages from the English menu, visit this Flickr album.

And finally, enjoy this video of the Street Performer Festival in Setagaya Art Town! It was so much fun, and had some really amazing performers.

Kamakura was already one of my favorite places to visit in Japan. It’s such a short distance from Tokyo, about a hour by train, an offers great sites. Not only does it feature the Great Buddha Statue–a must see–but countless other beautiful temples. Kamakura’s shopping streets also have a fun atmosphere. On top of that, there are beaches! I feel in love with Kamakura even more during our last visit this month. The reason? This restaurant by the ocean: Magokoro.

Magokoro is Organic and Hemp Cafe and Bar. Though I would also classify it as a restaurant and a little storefront. While not fully vegan (perhaps its only downside), Magokoro serves a two fully vegan lunch sets as well as other vegan menu items.

If you are not comfortable speaking Japanese, no problem! They have a fully English menu. I also found that our two waitresses spoke a tiny bit of English, ensuring us that our choices were fully vegan. Awesome! Here are pictures of the English menu:

Unfortunately they were out of the Hemp Curry Plate (1180 yen), so George and I both got the Vegan Plate of the Day (1280 yen). The day we went the set was Vegan Bibimbap! It was absolutely delicious. As you can see from the pictures below, the lunch set contains 5 dishes/bowls of veggie goodness. The main dish, the Bibimbap was perfect. Topped with roasted hemp seed, mushrooms, various picked vegetables, and cut nori, the flavor was savory went perfectly with rice. I topped my dish off with spicy chili-hemp oil. Of course if you don’t like spicy food, you can skip this. The next little dish was a soft tofu topped with Magokoro’s vegan version of kimchi. A bit hard to eat with chopsticks, but very tasty! There is also a small salad topped with hemp seeds. To finish off the set was a seaweed and hemp soup and a tiny plate of two pickled vegetables. The soup had a light flavor, and the seaweed taste wasn’t overpowering.

To finish off the meal, I had to get dessert! Magokoro has a selection of vegan cakes, soy yogurt parfaits, and also hemp and soy gelato. Impressive! Since it was warm that day, I went for a chocolate hemp gelato! It did not disappoint. It wasn’t overly sweet, and the hemp seed topping added a nice texture.

All the food was very delicious and well worth the trip. We went right at noon, and we had to wait outside for about 20 minutes. It wasn’t too bad. We got there right at the right time, because while we were seated, the line grew 4x longer. Because they were so busy, the service was a bit slow. However, the wait was made more bearable by the gorgeous view.

Magokoro sits right in front of the ocean. It has a fantastic view of the beach. It was fun watching people in the water, and it just really added to the atmosphere. I also want to mention that by the entrance they sell various products made of hemp, such as clothes and bags. Very cool!

I highly recommend coming here while you are in Kamakura. Just be sure to mention that you are vegan, and the server will help guide you through the menu. You will not be disappointed!

Tokyo has a few Natural House grocery store locations. They specialize in organic and natural products. Their prices are rather expensive, but they do have a variety of vegan meats. The store also tries to label which items are vegan. There are some vegan Japanese meals in their prepared foods section that can be purchased as well. They had a tempura mock meat while I was there, but then I noticed it had egg or milk so I was out of luck. They do not have a large amount of vegan items but there are some. See below for a few vegan items I found here.

Nakano Broadway

My favorite find was right in my own backyard! In the basement level of Nakano Broadway are many grocery stores. You can find fresh fruit and vegetables and so much more. There is one shop that I found that specializes in soy. They have a variety of seasoned tofu available. I found dried soy meat in the back left corner of the store! It was a great find and reasonably priced. To cook, you boil it with spices and then add it to your favorite dish. I like making General Tso’s chicken with it or I add it into a Japanese curry.

Vegan Restaurants

Vegan restaurants like Loving Hut and T’s Tan Tan offer vegan meats and other items for sale in their restaurants.

Hey everyone! Elton and I are back with another video where we tasted some new flavors of soy milk we found here in Japan. This time we try: Vanilla Ice Cream, Earl Grey, Pudding, Black Sesame, and Ginger!

To get the best ramen in the world, you don’t have to travel far. Well… not if you live in Tokyo, Japan. Otherwise, you have to check out T’s TanTan when your in Japan. For this post, I’ll tell you about T’s TanTan in Tokyo station. Their Tokyo Station location is primarily focused on their ramen, although they have a curry and other dishes as well.

T’s TanTan can be found by entering Tokyo Station. You will need to have a ticket or buy one at the JR ticket booth. Once you enter, look for signs for the Keiyo line. Once you see Keiyo street, walk down and T’s will be on your right. Be sure to check out my video at the end of the post. I show you how to find the restaurant and show you their current menu.

T’s TanTan is all vegan and serves great ramen and curries. They also have a variety of sides, like sweet and sour fried chicken. This is a great place to find healthy ramen that doesn’t lack in flavor!

The ramen is priced from 750¥ and 900¥ (about $7.50-$9.00). If you’re really hungry, I suggest the set menu that comes with ramen and a side (price of ramen plus 300¥). Beyond ramen, the Japanese curry they serve is fantastic and I enjoy the fried soy meat as well. Between 7am and 11am they offer specially priced ramen and a Japanese breakfast soup.

On my latest visit, I ordered the Shiro TanTan set and I chose the summer special curry, Matsamon curry. The Shiro TanTan was fantastic. It has some soy meat and wasn’t too spicy. The curry was different than the Japanese curry they also serve. It’s Thai inspired and is a coconut curry. My favorite dish is the regular TanTan Ramen. It’s spicy with soy meat and tastes amazing!

T’s TanTan also has a variety of soup bases and vegan meats. They’re a little more expensive than I would pay in America, but these types of items are more difficult to find in Japan.

Check out my trip to T’s TanTan here:

Interested in helping me translate my posts and videos? Contact me, since I’d love to get this post and my videos translated into as many languages as possible!

During the last holiday in Japan, I had the opportunity to travel to Nagano Prefecture. Nagano is known for many things, but visiting the snow monkeys was top on my list. Jigokudani isn’t like a zoo. The monkeys come and go as they please. The park provides food for the monkeys and there are natural hot springs that help warm the monkeys in the winter.

Below are some of my pictures from the park, and at the bottom is a video I made explaining how to get to the park. If you’re ever in Japan, Jigokudani is definitely somewhere you should consider traveling to.